Why it works: Beef and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 17,092 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Onion Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the stock
Remove grease from stock, add seasoning and bay leaf.
Cook the onions
Fry the onion light brown in butter.
Before taking it from the skillet, sprinkle well with cheese, then add the onions to the boiling stock.
Serve
Serve with dry toast sprinkled with plenty of onion and cheese.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 3 of 4 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Beef | 100g cooked | 250 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Bay Leaf | 1 leaf (0.6g) | 2 |
| Soup | not in our table | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Beef + oniontop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,092 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Beef stock
- Forms the liquid base and carries most of the savory beefy flavor of the soup.
- Onions
- Lightly browning them develops sweetness and depth of flavor in the soup.
- Bay leaf
- Adds a subtle herbal aroma to the stock as it simmers.
The step that matters
Frying the onion light brown in butter. Onions gently browned in fat develop sweetness through caramelization. If they darken too far they turn bitter and can spoil the flavor of the whole soup.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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